For half a century, Gail Lavallee has associated the thick, rectangular pizza from Clank’s Bar in Marcus Hook with reasons to celebrate.

“When you got to go to Clank’s, that was a big deal. It was a special occasion and as I got older and had my own kids, we went there, too, for baptisms, birthdays and graduations,” said the 57-year-old Marcus Hook resident.

Sunday afternoon she was among an estimated 100 proud patrons at the eatery on the 300 block of Market Street who were helping owners Dawn and Michael Clymer do some celebrating of their own. Not only were they happy about Clank’s recovery from smoke and water damage due to a November fire at a neighboring apartment, their pizza was recently selected from 26 entries as the winner of the Daily Times’ March Madness of Delco Pizza contest. There were balloons, a cake and tunes for every generation “spun” by D.J. Joey B. The main course at the celebration was none other than Clank’s signature pie, courtesy of the victors.

“Today, we thought we should thank everyone who voted for us with a pizza party,” said Dawn Clymer, who has worked at the bar and pizza shop for 26 of her 38 years.

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She started at age 12, folding pizza boxes and gradually expanded her responsibilities. About a year ago, Clymer and her husband purchased Clank’s from her mother, Madeline Pauels, who had owned the place for 12 years. They are the fifth owners of the bar that was opened in the early 1950s by Clank Mingoia and his wife, Bert. Their pizza recipe was passed along and became so popular that, about 20 years ago, it went from being available only Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, to seven days week.

“The secret to our pizza is Chester water,” said Clymer, referring to the Chester Water Authority that draws its product from the Octoraro reservoir and Conowingo Pool of the Susquehanna River and dispenses it from the Octoraro Treatment Plant in Britain Township, Lancaster County.

For Lavallee, the consistency in rendering the Mingoias’ recipe is what has kept her coming back since age 7, when her now-late parents, John and Betty Montella, first brought her and her three siblings to Clank’s for pizza.

Not only has Lavallee been a loyal Clank’s customer, she and members of her family have also worked there over the years. Sunday afternoon, her daughter, Amanda Lavallee, and her stepson, Justin Byers, were among the cooks preparing the pies.

“I got here around 1 o’clock when it started in case they needed help,” said Lavallee on Sunday afternoon.

With Clank’s staff of 11 already in full force feeding faithful fans, Lavallee was free to talk, laugh and reminisce with her daughter, Mary Lavallee and other relatives and friends. Her husband, Patrick, was home baby-sitting their 5-year-old granddaughter, Abby Livingston, who, with their 1-year-old granddaughter, Anna Thomas, has already been introduced to the family’s favorite pizza pie.

“It’s a tradition we were started on and we started it with our own kids early on,” noted Lavallee.